Beautifully sized, full of movement and grace, this work is fully in keeping with the Art Nouveau period and style. It has a velvety patina with a mordant finish in places, and is very pleasant to the touch.
Its creator, Edouard Marcel Sandoz, was a lover of nature, a passion that is reflected in his work, which gives pride of place to animal subjects.
Indeed, fascinated by the animal world, he played a key role in the creation of the Société française des animaliers in 1933. The work presented here is a perfect illustration of his artistic approach. Sandoz meticulously observes his models, simplifying volumes and eliminating superfluous details to retain only the essential lines.
This purity of treatment lends his sculptures great intensity and suggestive power. His modelling, both realistic and sensual, gives his creations a remarkable harmony and monumentality.
These two carps are a very rare model, not easily found on the art market.
About Edouard Marcel Sandoz (1881-1971)
Born in 1881, Edouard Marcel Sandoz showed a remarkable talent for graphic arts and sculpture from an early age. After studying at the École des Arts Industriels in Geneva, he joined the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1906, where he became a pupil of Antonin Mercié and Jean-Antonin Injalbert. By 1910, he had already made a name for himself, exhibiting for the first time in Paris a series of animal sculptures in an “archaizing” style.
A passionate artist and tireless draftsman, he developed a unique aesthetic in perfect harmony with the principles of Art Nouveau. Thanks to his classical training, in-depth knowledge of materials and technical mastery, Sandoz forged a personal sculptural language, characterized by elegant forms, rigorous execution and solid volumes.